Hopedale firefighters raise money for families displaced by fire

By Christopher Gavin Daily News Staff

Monday

Feb 5, 2018 at 6:32 PMFeb 6, 2018 at 3:12 PM

HOPEDALE - Local firefighters have launched a campaign to raise money for two families after a weekend fire made their Hopedale Street duplex uninhabitable and left behind more than $500,000 in damages.

As of 5:45 p.m. Monday, $7,090 was collected by the Hopedale Firefighters Association from 95 donors within a day since the effort started on the online fundraising site, GoFundMe.com.

Sade Hukanovic, who lives at 145-147 Hopedale St. with his wife and two children, said Monday the fire has left him sad and shocked.

Hukanovic owns the house with his brother, Rufad - who occupies its other half with his family - and said he started living there 20 years ago.

It was about two years after he and his brother came to the United States from Bosnia with only $100 in his pocket, he said.

“I just want to start over...that’s my goal,” Sade Hukanovic said while standing outside the residence Monday afternoon. “I tried to make the best start of it.”

Fire department officials have said the blaze started sometime before 3:48 p.m. Saturday, a few hours after firefighters were first called to the house for a report of a wet log in a wood-burning stove that filled the basement with smoke.

A check of the chimney found that it was nearly fully blocked by soot and creosote, they said.

Miscommunication over whether the chimney was safe to use again after crews initially left could have contributed to the second fire, family members and officials said.

The Massachusetts Fire Marshal’s Office ruled the fire accidental.

Hopedale firefighter paramedic Brian Kelley said the firefighters association, which typically collects money for school scholarships and department necessities, decided to launch the fundraising campaign as part of its mission to give back to the community.

It hopes to raise as much as possible of its $10,000 total goal to help the families start again, he said.

“One hundred percent of the money that we raise is going to be split evenly between the two families,” Kelley said.

So far, donations have come in from across Hopedale as well as other states and countries.

The Hukanovics, who are staying in town with relatives, said they have received support from everyone they’ve spoken to in the last few days.

They can’t thank people enough, said Rufad Hukanovic.

“I can’t express how much we appreciate everybody...trying to put life back to normal.”

Monetary donations for the association’s collection can be made in person at the Hopedale Fire Department, 40 Dutcher St., Kelley said. The GoFundMe page can be found at www.gofundme.com/145-147HopedaleSt

Christopher Gavin can be reached at 508 634-7582 or cgavin@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @c_gavinMDN